Gardens and Children

I have almost finished the last of the planting, adding a few new varieties to see how they will do.  I lost one of my big vines and feel as though I've lost a dear friend.  This is my favorite time of the season, to have worked hard planting and then to sit back and watch things grow.  To take care of these plants, to see which ones have trouble getting along...there are those you have to help a little more along the way, until they burst into their full bloom and glory.  Some plants just take off and do fine without any sort of encouragement except a little water. 
Maybe I like gardening so much, because I like to see things grow.  Sometimes the flowers surprise me by being a different color than I had expected, but that color is usually more beautiful than the one I picked out.  Gardens are like raising children.  You plant seeds, you care for them, you watch them grow, you help the ones that are having trouble, and take pleasure when that troubled flower starts flourishing.
I am a gardener.  In the past when I have encountered disappointment, I can become discouraged.  I second guess myself, thinking what else could I have done?  Could I have been more attentive to my flowers?  Could I have cared for them any better?  Sometimes things happen in gardens that are beyond the caretaker's control.  To enjoy one's garden all you can do, is be willing to plant the seeds, nourish and care for them, then stand back and see what happens.  I have learned a few things as a gardener. I am more at peace as the seasons come and go.  It is what it is.  I do what I can.  I can't change the weather.  I can't change my abilities - my health, my strength, my age.  I can just try.  I love my garden.  I can just plant the flowers, care for them nourish them, love them, and enjoy them.  They are, after all God's creations. 
I am just the gardener.